Much to our surprise we have been informed by our mortgage broker that my Ryde the law firm I have appointed is not on the mortgage company Solicitor panel. What can I do to be certain if this is indeed the case?

The first thing you need to do is to contact your Ryde lawyer directly. You lawyer should notify you of the situation. Where they are not on the panel they may be able to suggest a Ryde conveyancing practice that is on the approved list of lawyers for your mortgage company.

I am the registered owner of a freehold property in Ryde but still pay rent, why is this and what is this?

It is rare for properties in Ryde and has limited impact for conveyancing in Ryde but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.

Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges have existed for hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the creation of new rentcharges post 1977.

Previous rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence post 2037 will be extinguished.

The Ryde conveyancing firm that I recently instructed on my house acquisition in Ryde have suddenly closed. I chose them because I had to have a solicitor on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel and my preferred Ryde lawyer was not. I cut them a cheque for £250 in advance. What are my options?

Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then inform them immediately so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to the problems encountered. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new solicitors should be in a position to assist.

I have been told that property searches are the primary cause of delay in Ryde house deals. Is there any truth in this?

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) released findings of research by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature amongst the most frequent causes of hindrances in the conveyancing process. Local searches are unlikely to be the root cause of holding up conveyancing in Ryde.

I am buying a new build apartment in Ryde. Conveyancing is daunting at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build conveyancing.

Set out below are examples of a few leasehold new build questions that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Ryde

The Landlord must covenant to assume the management if the Management Company goes into liquidation or otherwise defaults in running the management scheme. Please confirm the Lease plans are surveyor prepared. Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision. Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose? There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants.